Davos, Switzerland. 5 January 2011 – The business end of the O'Neill Evolution 2011 got underway today with the women's Halfpipe semi-finals in which 2002 Olympic Gold medalist Kelly Clark stole the show.
To a cheering crowd gathered at the base of the Jakobshorn, the 27 year old American pulled out a score of 89.05 on her second run with a huge FS Air, BS540, FS 720 and a Cab 7.
"I am doing the TTR this year so I thought Evolution would be a great event to come to before going to Laax," said Kelly.
"I also have some good friends here as well so it's been good to come here to see them," she said. And everyone could definitely hear them as they cheered her every trick – and much deserved cheering it was.
"The halfpipe is shorter than what I am used to, but it's really good," said Kelly. "The important thing about the semis is to qualify for the finals. Now I'm in the finals I will for sure try more."
In addition to the Women's semi-finals, the Jakbshorn Halfpipe also played host to the Men's qualification heats at this 6Star Swatch TTR World Snowboard Tour event.
It was two Swiss riders who came out top of both qualification rounds – Jan Scherrer from the first and Patrick Burgener from the second.
But also making a huge impact in the qualifications was the young American rider, Scott Moline. "It's amazing here so far," said Scott. "Today I just did a Crippler 7, Cab 7, Front 5 and Back 5. I kinda want to put in a front 10 or maybe a front 9. But I want to stay going big," he said.
"It helps that they judge amplitude because in pipe it's a lot harder to go big and do tricks then go small and do technical tricks," said Scott.
The 17-year-old from Wisconsin will also be one to watch in the Slopestyle qualifications tomorrow. "When I first saw the jump I was like, woah, it's massive! But today we were just spinning and having fun and with Max Henault helpign me I learnt how to do a backside Double Cork 10. That's amazing!" said Scott.
"This jump helps with progression of the sport so much," he said. "If it's a good day, you can practice your run and practice new tricks. I can't wait. It's going to be so much fun."

ABOUT O'NEILL
O’Neill, the original California surf, snow and lifestyle brand, was founded in 1952 when a young man named Jack O’Neill took his unstoppable passion for surfing and used it to beat Mother Nature at her own game. Pioneering the world’s first neoprene surf wetsuit, Jack had successfully found a way to extend his surf sessions in the bone-chilling breaks of Northern California. He opened up the garage doors to his first surf shop soon after.

While many things have changed since those humble beginnings, Jack’s initial vision of producing functional and innovative board riding products continues to lie at the core of everything the company does. O’Neill’s set of core values – innovation in style and technology – has seen the brand devote itself wholeheartedly to the evolution of action sports. From the first neoprene surf wetsuit and board leash, to the world’s first stitchless board shorts and range of groundbreaking wearable electronics, O’Neill’s spirit of innovation will always drive the company forwards.

Today, O’Neill can be found the world over. In touch with its rich heritage and the universal appeal of board riding culture, O’Neill will always be committed to growing its reputation as one of the world’s leading youth lifestyle brands based on a unique half-century of history as the First Name in the Water.

ABOUT SWATCH
Swatch, founded in 1983 by Nicolas G. Hayek and under the presidency today of Arlette-Elsa Emch, is a leading Swiss watch and jewelry maker and one of the world’s most fashionable brands. Swatch is a member of the international Swatch Group of Biel/Bienne, Switzerland. The brand has been closely associated for many years with trendy lifestyle and popular sports, through its role as Official Timekeeper at competitive events, the introduction and development of Swatch Pro Teams, and through innovative products like the Swatch Snowpass System, a built-in access technology allowing Swatch watches to serve as ski passes at over 600 winter sports destinations around the world.

ABOUT TTR PRO SNOWBOARDING
Founded by Terje Haakonsen and industry innovators in 2002, TTR (Ticket To Ride) PRO SNOWBOARDING, is a non-profit, rider-driven organization. The TTR owns and operates the Swatch TTR World Snowboard Tour and the Swatch TTR World Ranking List and it strives to create the highest quality competitive snowboard environment in the world using authenticity, accessibility and innovation as guiding principles. TTR has developed the Swatch TTR World Tour into the most exposed snowboard tour worldwide featuring a 10-month season filled with hundreds of grass roots and major independent freestyle snowboarding events. Events are rated on a 1-through-6Star system, where all competing athletes earn TTR world ranking points based on the star level of each event; a 6Star event holds the highest allocation of ranking points. The top male and female riders are crowned TTR World Snowboard Tour Champion at the last 6Star event of the season – the Burton US Open. For more information, visit www.ttrworldtour.com